


i prefer living in color

by elfblooded



Category: Original Work
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-17
Updated: 2020-08-17
Packaged: 2021-03-06 06:27:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 945
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25948819
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/elfblooded/pseuds/elfblooded
Summary: it is once again late, and I have too many thoughts on colors and too little good judgement to keep them to myself.
Kudos: 1





	i prefer living in color

Red is the taste of copper in your mouth and anger building until your vision goes hazy; it’s the feeling of grit in your mouth and the view of a blazing sunset screaming in the sky. Red is the sound of high heels clacking on tile; Red is balling your hands into fists and biting your tongue before letting loose, tasting pepper on your food and eating something spicy enough to burn.

Orange is the smell of citrus and the sound of a belly-laugh, so deep and hard that you shake with it. It’s the taste of warm gingerbread and iron on your tongue when you’re nervous, the sound of music leaking from someone’s headphones. It’s white knuckling the armrest of your airplane seat during turbulence, and shaking, miserable panic.

Yellow is spinning around in circles so that your skirt fans out around you and the feeling of nausea after eating too much, the sound of a piano with tinkling keys. Yellow is tilting your head back and feeling the sun on your face, of feeling grass under bare feet and sand between your toes and trying to stifle your giggles.

Green is the smell of rain and earth and bark, cold water splashing the back of your neck and stomping in puddles. It’s wriggling your toes in mud and sprinting down a hill. Green is the smell of mint and building fairy houses out of sticks when you were younger.

Blue is getting the wind knocked out of you and trying to catch your breath. Blue is the sound and smell of the ocean and tasting raindrops and catching snowflakes on your tongue. Blue is sneezing unexpectedly and running your hands over crushed velvet and pressing on bruises and rolling up the cuffs of your pants to step into ankle-deep water.

Indigo is a warm summer night and the sound of crickets, and when you’re curling into a ball because you’re too miserable to cry. It’s swimming in warm water and seeing fireflies light up, hearing the other children shriek with laughter and running after them to play. Indigo is trying to listen to far-away music, tilting your head to the side; smoothing out your skirt before you stand up.

Purple is dancing, sliding your feet and shaking your hips and waving your arms in the air as you spin to music with a strong, steady beat. Purple is the feeling of guilt you get while lying through your teeth, and crying in a bathroom stall. Punching someone and hearing an orchestra warming up before playing, dozens of strings crying out from below you, and sitting down to begin a seder.

Violet is slapping someone across the face and bursting into laughter. Violet is yelling and screaming and singing too loudly, doing stupid things with your friends and the collective realization that you’re all fucked. Walking on places too narrow, climbing too high into trees; Violet is the feeling of adrenaline and loving the thrill of something not-quite-safe.

Pink is the feeling of flower petals between your fingers, and a bubble of gum popping and sticking to your skin. Cloying sweetness, the soft feeling of spun sugar and silk between your fingers. It’s the taste of watermelon and oranges, sticky fruit leaving juice running down your chin. Pink is when you feel giddy over a crush, letting yourself feel silly and muffling laughter into your hands.

Brown is the smell of cinnamon, cardamom, turmeric, paprika; it’s the smell of subway cars and the feeling of a headache coming on. Brown is people talking over you when you have something to say, your hair frizzing up when it’s humid outside. Brown is looking in the mirror and biting your lip; blending into the rest of the crowd.

Grey is sitting by a window and watching the rain, holding a steaming mug in your hands. Grey is a numbness so deep that you’re desperate to feel something, anything, no matter how awful. Grey is the feeling of soft fur between your fingers, and the sound of a cat’s purr. Grey is walking on your tiptoes and blowing your nose when you have a cold; the sound of raindrops on the roof and humming yourself a lullaby.

White is blinking spots out of your eyes, the taste of spearmint toothpaste and the stillness that comes with a blanket of snow. White is the flap of butterfly wings and eyelashes and eating birthday cake after blowing out the candles. It’s gasping and clutching at a stitch in your side, yanking your hand back from a hot pan, running and tackling a friend whom you haven’t seen in forever.

Black is sticky summer heat that gets caught in your lungs; it’s burrowing under your blankets and pulling a pillow over your head; the smell of smoke and the taste of a charred marshmallow. Black is sparks that fly out from construction work, drinking coffee with sheer desperation, feeling terror clutch at your heart after hearing a noise when you’re alone, and wishing on a star you see at night.

A rainbow is the sound of a gasp and the feeling of breath caught in your throat; a tear rolling down your cheek, and the desire to laugh for no reason. It’s widened eyes and singing for no reason and sprinting through a field with the sun on your back and grass underfoot. A rainbow is wonder and the desire to live for the joy of it, feeling like you’ve been stripped down to your soul and found worthy of something, when your heart is nearly fit to burst with the beautiful kaleidoscope that makes up the world around you.

**Author's Note:**

> it's becoming a habit to post work in the middle of the night when I'm too tired to talk myself out of it, huh.


End file.
